Grouping and shingling device for rotary disk slicing machines



P. H. MEYER Aug. 24, 1954 2,687,207 GROUPING AND SHINGLING DEVICE FOR ROTARY DISK SLICING MACHINES 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 11 1950 I INVENTOR. PczzzZ Hfiizggar; WW, MfiM P. H. MEYER m m N II m A D M MG N LI c NI L HS K D S NI A D G v. M I

DAT U0 0 R R Filed April 11. 1950 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 IIIIIIIII'"JJIIIIII'J'I MN km 1/ i l i INVENTOR. PczaZfffiigye/j (WWW Aug. 24, 1954 P. H. MEYER 2,587,207

GROUPING AND snmauuc DEVICE FOR ROTARY DISK SLICING MACHINES 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed April 11. 1950 INVENTOR. I Pazziflfl yei;

Aug. 24, 1954 P. H. MEYER 2,687,207 GROUPING AND SHINGLING DEVICE FOR ROTARY DISK SLICING MACHINES 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed April 11, 1950 kwbw mm Q I Q N A- INVENTOR. fi/Vq a;

Patented Aug. 24, 1954 ass st? GROUPING AND SHINGLING DEVICE FOR ROTARY DISK SLIOING MACHINES Paul H. Meyer, La Porte, Ind., assignor to U. S. Slicing Machine Company, Inc., La Porte, Ind.,

a corporation of Indiana Application April 11, 1950, Serial No. 155,284

4 Claims. 1

This invention relates to a grouping device operative in connection with a slicing machine, as, for example, a meat slicer in which slices are cut from a body or block of meat and transferred to a conveyor.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide a device for grouping slices as they are cut into stacks on a conveyor and moving such stacks on the conveyor in order to produce spaced stacks or groups of such slices which can be readily handled and packaged.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device forgrouping and shingling slices and moving them on a conveyor at spaced intervals.

An additional object of the invention is to pro-- vide a device of the class described which operates in response tothe movement of the ,fly of a meat slicer.

Other objects and advantages of theinvention will be apparent by reference to the following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a sideelevational View of a machine constructed in accordance with the principles of this invention showing generally the driving relationship of certain elements of the machine;

Figure 2 is an enlargedside elevational view of the grouping device provided in accordance with this invention;

Figure 3 is a plan view of the gripping device shown in Figure: 2;

Figure 4 is a section taken along the line 4 -4 of Figure 2;

Figure 5 is a partial sectional view taken along the line 5-5 of Figure 3;

Figure 6 is a partial sectional view taken along the line 66 of Figure 3; and

Figure 7' is a partial sectional the line 1- of Figure 3.

The, type of slicing machine to which this invention is particularly adapted is illustrated in Stiles, U. S. Patent 1,231,959, and comprises an endless pronged receiver adapted to receive each slice as it is severedand to convey it past a fly having spaced fingers adapted to move between the prongs of the receiver and forcibly eject the slice from such prongs by movement back and forth and thereby to discharge the slices successively on a receiving platform or conveyor.

The grouping device of the present invention is adapted to move the conveyor in response to the movement of the fly and is adjustable to stack view takenalong theslices on the conveyor with a predetermined number, say four to sixteen slices per group.

The device of the present invention is also adapted to shingle the slices by moving the conveyor a predetermined distance after each slice is deposited thereon and is adjustable so that the number of shingled slices can be varied.

In Figure 1 the grouping and shingling mechanism is generally shown at I. The fly 2 which is provided with fingers 3 to remove the slices from the prongs of a conventional slicing machine illustrated in U. S. Patent 1,231,959, is reciprocated from a substantially upward or vertical position as shown in the drawing to a substantially horizontal position and on each downward movement deposits a slice on the belt conveyor 4 which is made of rubber or other suitable material and is shown with parts broken away. It will be understood that the conveyor l is a conventional type of conveyor and is mounted in a conventional manner, for example, on a series of rollers such as the idler roller 5 and the drive roller 6.

The movement of the fly 2 is controlled in a conventional manner by the spring 7 shown with parts broken away and by a driving mechanism driven from the fly wheel shaft 8.

The downward movement of the fly 2 to deposit a slice on the conveyor 4 is effected by the pull of the spring 1 which is connected at one end 9 to the frame it and at the other end H to an arm [2. The arm I2 is rigidly connected to an arm [3, being fastened to the flyshaft M on which the fly 2 is fixedly mounted. The lever is pivotally connected to the arms l2 and i3 substantially at the junction thereof by means of a pin It or other suitable means.

The lever I5 is fastened by a bolt and cam roller member I! or other suitable means to a yoke member l8 mounted on a shaft It so that the arms and 2! act as a guide for the reciprocating movement of the lever it.

In the position shown in Figure l the fly 2 is about to be urged downwardly by the spring '5' which will cause the yoke member i8 and the lever I5 to slide to the right over the shaft llfi. The cam roller member ll is actuated by a cam track 23 mounted on the gear 24 driven by the flywheel shaft 8. A collar 22 is provided to position the arms 2|] and 2| on the shaft it]. As the flywheel shaft 8 rotates the gear 25 will be rotated in the direction of the arrows thereby causing the gear cam track 23 and its associated cam roller ll to move the arm l5 and cause the fly 2 to be returned from a horizontal to a substantially vertical position shown in Figure 1.

The grouping device I is operated in response to the movement of the flyshaft M by being fixedly 3 connected by means of an arm 25 with the flyshaft I4.

As illustrated in Figure 2 the grouping device l comprises a housing 25 shown in section which is fastened to a frame member 2? and to other portions of the frame in any suitable manner, for example, by means of bolts 28, 24 and 34 extending through spacer elements 3!, 32 and respectively, The outside of the housing 26 shown in Figure 1 is provided with an opening 34 through which projects a shingling handle 35 and a grouper handle 36 each of which is movable back and forth in the opening 34 to adjust the spacing of the shingled slices, or the number of slices per group, or both.

The handle 35 is connected by means of bolts 31 and 38 to an arm 39 which is fastened at one end to a shingling indicating plate 44 and adjacent the other end by means of screws 4!, 4! to a shingling adjusting cam 42. The screws 4!, 4! pass through curved slots 4w, Ma (Figure 2). The slots permit the adjustment of the cam 42 with respect to the arm 39. i

The grouper adjusting handle 36 is affixed to an arm 43 which has a curved portion 44 to permit it to pass around the bolts 3? and 38. The upper end of the grouper adjusting arm 43 is afiixed to a curved grouping indicating plate 45. The lower end of the adjusting arm 43 is afiixed by means of screws 46 and 4'3 or other suitable means to an L-shaped connecting arm 48. The L-shaped connecting arm 48 in turn is fastened by means of screws 49, 49 to the grouping adjusting cam 58. The screws 49, 49 correspond to the screws 4|, 4| in cam 42 and are connected to the cam 50 through slotted openings similar to the openings Ma, Ma thereby permitting the adjustment of cam 50 with respect to arm 48. Thus it will be apparent that the shingling adjusting cam 42 can be moved by moving the handle 35 and the grouping adjusting cam i] can be moved by moving the handle 35. The retention of these cams in a particular predetermined position in order to shingle or group, as the case may be, a given number of slices is effected by means of indexing plates.

The shingling indexing plate 5! is a curved member supported at its opposite ends by supporting shafts 52 and 53. The grouping indexing plate 54 is similar in shape to the shingling indexing plate and likewise is supported by the shafts 52 and 53. The guide plate 55 which is curved similarly to plates 5! and 54 is also supported by the shafts 52 and 53.

The inner side of the indexing plate 5! contains a series of notches 56 shown in dotted lines in Figure 2. Similarly the inner side of the grouping indexing plate 54 contains a series of notches. It will be understood that the number of notches will be varied depending on the desired shingling spacing and the desired number of slices per group, as the case may be. As an example, the grouping indexing plate 54 may con tain eleven notches to correspond to from four to sixteen slices per group. The shingling indexing plate 5| may contain say ten notches which would give ten variations of slice spacing from the minimum to the maximum setting.

When the handle 35 is moved in order to adjust the cam 42 the retention of a particular position is accomplished by the ball 51 which is urged by means of a spring 58 into any one of the notches 55 on the inner side of the indexing plate 5!. The ball and spring arrangement is carried as shown in Figure 4 by a collar 59 fastened to one 18 of the cam 42.

end of the arm 39 and provided with a recess 6|]. As illustrated, the spring 53 is positioned against one end of the recess and presses the ball 51 outwardly in the direction of the indexing plate iii. The inner side of the lower end of the arm 39 contacts the outer smooth side of the grouping indexing plate 54 which thereby serves as a guide.

In a similar manner the ball 61 and the spring 62 are carried in a recess 53 in the collar 64 which is fastened to the arm 48 as shown in Figure 4. The spring 62 urges the ball 6! toward the notched inner side of the grouping indexing plate 54. Each time the ball enters a notch it serves to stop the handle 36 in a given position. However, the pressure of the spring 62 is sufficiently light so that the handle can readily be moved again to another position.

The device is calibrated so that the number of slices per shingle or group is shown on the indicating plates 40 and 45. An indicating wire '65 is provided so that the operator of the machine may view the indicating plates 40 and 45 through the windows 66 and Si, respectively, and align the indicating wire 65 with a predetermined number on the indicating plates 40 and 45. A glass or other transparent covering 88 is provided over the openings 56 and 57 to protect the device and prevent the entry of dust and dirt.

The indicator wire 65 is fastened around the shaft 30 as shown in Figure 2 but it will be understood that any other type of aligning means may be provided.

The shingling cam 42 is operatively associated with the shingling pawl 59 which is freely mounted on the supporting shaft Hi. The pawl driving blade H which is afiixed to the end of the pawl by means of a screw '52 (Figure 2) is adapted to engage the teeth 13 of shingling pawl wheel 14. The shingling pawl wheel 14 is fixed to conveyor drive shaft 15 by means of a drive pin 16.

The outer side of pawl 69 is provided with a cam roller 11 which rides on the upper surface When the cam roller 71 rides over the portion is it permits the blade H of the pawl 69 to engage the teeth "a3 of the pawl wheel 14. Each time this occurs the conveyor 4 is moved. It will be apparent that the spacing of the shingled slices can be varied by rotating the cam 42 by means of the handle 35 in order to change the length of the engagement of the pawl 69 with its associated ratchet wheel 14. In the setting illustrated in Figure 2 the length of engagement is at a maximum. In other words, the spacing of the shingled slices represents a maximum for this particular device. As an example, if the device is constructed to shingle with number l on the indicator plate 44 as the minimum spacing of slices, and number 10 as the maximum, the shingling setting in this instance would be such that the numeral 10 would be opposite the indicator wire 55.

The spacing of the shingled slices is decreased by moving the handle 35 in a counterclockwise direction.

The projecting end of the pawl 59 carries a fixed pin 8| which is urged outwardly by a pin 82 under the pressure of spring 83. The spring 83 and pin 82 are carried in an opening in the top of arm 84 which projects from the outer or front pawl lever 85. In this way the pawl 69 is always resiliently urged toward the ratchet Wheel 14.

The grouping adjusting cam 50 is, generally similar. to the shingling. adjusting. cam: 42. A timing. pawl 90 is mounted'onztheshaft in a. manner similar to the. shingling pawl 68. The:

pawl. 90 is provided with a laterally extending; camroller 9t whichs cooperates with the upper surface: of cam 5m: and: is directly behind canr roller I 3 in FigureZ. The timingpawl 90 is: generally similar structure to the pawl 69 and. drives ratchet wheel 92: in. a manner generally similar to themanner in. which thezpawl B9 drives the ratchet wheel 14. However, the ratchet wheel: 92 :is freely mounted on the shaft" 15. so that each stroke of. the-pawl .90 against the ratchet wheel-92 does: not move the shaft. 1-5. The friction pressure; of the. bent fiat: spring 86" madeof springmetal or other suitable material prevents theratchet wheel92 from'overrunning after each stroke of the :pawl. It will be noted from Figure 2 that springtt is bent so that a curved. portion 81 is. supported by the shaft 53 and; the portions adjacent the ends. 88 and. 89 impinge against the ratchet wheel 92. Each stroke of the pawl against the ratchet wheel 92 corresponds to the deposit of one slice on the conveyor 4 andthe. setting of the grouping indicator will determine the number of slices deposited on the conveyor 4' in a vertical stack before the grouping device moves the conveyor to make room for another stack.

The driving pawl wheel: 93 and itsclutch H5 are freely mounted by means of needlebearings 94-0n. the shaft I5. 2 Driving clutch: -I I5 is keyed to driving gear 95-. Driving gear 95 engages gear 96 mounted on countershaft-Ql thereby'driving the gear 98-on saidshaft which in. turn drives the: gear 99 fixed to the conveyor drive shaft by means of drive pin I00. Thus the rotation of ratchet wheel93 will causethe rotation of the" drive roller 5 on which conveyor belt 4 is mounted.

A driving pawl. [III is mounted onshaft 10. in a manner similar to the shingling pawl 69 and the timing pawl 90". A driving pawl cam I02 is mounted around the: shaft I5. :A camroller lw extends outwardly from .drivingpawl; Ill I" and cooperates with. the upper surface of driving camv I I12; When the cam roller I;Il3drops off of the cam: I02 at the point I'Mit permitsthe driving" pawl IGI: to engage the driving pawl or ratchet wheel 93. In. the device illustratedin the. drawings the drivingpawl Wheel. or the ratchetwheel 93 contains fourteeth spaced apart 90. The driving pawl or ratchet wheels "I14 and 92. each contain 96 teeth. It will be understoodthat the number of teeth. the various ratchet wheels:

may be varied depending upon the desiredfunotioning of the'devicer The 'driving cam IIl2is keyeduby means of a pin I 05 to timing ratchet. wheel 92.: Eachtimei the timing pawl 90 moves the-ratchet wheel 92 it also moves cam 102. I02 arrives at a: point where the depression I04 is opposite the cam roller I03: of driving pawl INN As drivingpawl I IlI drops into the depression. me it engages the driving ratchet wheel 93 and thereby rotates the shaft I5 andthe driving roller 6 and moves the conveyor in the mannerpreviously described.

As previously pointed out the shingling pawl 69,. the timing pawl 90 and the drivingpawl I 0 I are all rotatablymounted on shaft 10'. Shaft II! is supported on the frontv side by the lever Biand on the rear side by a lever lflfi. The levers 85 and I06. are mounted: on need-1e bearings. Inland I08 for rotation onzshaftl'i. .Anmarm'IDB is.

Eventually, therefore, cam I ratchet wheel 92.

freely mcmntedtat one end on? shaft: 1ft connectedpivotally at III] to the arm. 25 which in turn is connected to flyshaft' I4 in the manner previously. described. As theflyshaft t4 rotates:

counterclockwise the connecting armsi25 and. H19 cause the shaft 10 and its associated pawls: to be retracted in .a clockwise direction. .When the fiyshaft I4 rotatesin a clockwise direction (i. e.,. as the fly is moving from a horizontal to anupri'ght position) the shaft T0 and. its associated pawlsare moved in a counterclockwise direction.

During this lattermovement the pawls. actuate their associated drivingpawl wheels orratchet wheels unless held out of engagement. therewith by their associatedcams; It will be cleartherefore that if the conveyor 4 is moved the movement is effected on the up-stroke of the fly 2.

The machine may be operated in such a way that the fly 2- does not go through a complete cycle: This maybe caused, for example, when theoperator stops the operation in the middle of a cycle. As a result the-timing pawl maybe thrown out of proper timing. To readjust the release cam HI. When the deviceis out of proper timingthe pin I #3 will rotate against the projection H2 on the-release cam II I and causethelatter to beraised. When this occurs, the

upperside of therelease cam. III will strike against the pin I M on the innerside of the timing pawl 91! and cause the latter to be raised so that it cannot engage the teeth of the timing pawl In this manner the timing is corrected after one full stroke of the fly 2 and the device operates in proper timing thereafter.

The "driving ratchet wheel 93 is provided with an internal clutch arrangement as illustrated in Figure 5 which consits of a notch wheel II5 mounted on the shaft" T5 and havingnotches or recesses lie in the periphery thereof. Each of thenotches or recesses I IE contains a clutch roller IIl" which is normally pressed outwardly byafiat clut'ch spring HI This is a conventional one-way clutch arrangement permitting the ratchet wheel to rotatein one direction but not'in the other. A spring H9 generally similar to spring 86 but of a slightly different shape is provided to prevent overrunning of the'ratchet wheel 93'. As shown in Figure 5 the curved portion I20 of the spring H3 is seated on the shaft 53 "and the-portions Hi and I22 adjacent the ends press against the surface of the ratchet wheel- 93 The pawl 90 isnormally urged toward its associated ratchet wheel 92 by means of a pin I23 extending outwardly from the arm I24 which projects rearwardl'y from the pawl'flll. As shown in Figure 2; the pin E23 engages a pin I25 which 7 mounted in a rearwardly extending arm on the upper end of the pawl supporting lever I06, which arm is generally similar to the arm 84 of the pawl supporting lever 85 except that it contains only one opening for a spring pressed pin instead of two. i

The operation of the grouping and shingling device may be described as follows:

When the operator desires merely to group slices in a vertical stack hesets the operating lever 35 as far as it will go in a counterclockwise direction. This causes the outer circular portion of the cam 42 to engage the cam roller ll of the shingling cam 42 continuously during the back and forth movement of the pawl 69. Thus, when the lever arm 25 is reciprocated by the fly shaft l4 causing the arm [09 to reciprocate the pawl shaft If! the shingling pawl 69 is always held out of engagement with the teeth l3 of its associated ratchet wheel l l. Since the shingling mechanism cannot operate, each back and forth movement of the pawl shaft 10 will merely move the timing pawl 80. The conveyor drive shaft 15 will remain stationary. As the timing pawl 90 moves it will engage the teeth of the timing ratchet wheel 92 and cause the ratchet wheel 92 to move a predetermined distance depending upon the manual setting of the grouping handle 36. Each time the ratchet wheel 92 moves it will move the driving cam I02 a corresponding distance. During the movement of the driving cam I02 the cam roller I03 will ride on top of the cam I02 and keep the driving pawl llll from engaging the driving ratchet wheel 93. After a predetermined number of strokes, depending upon the number of slices in each stack in accordance with the setting of the handle 36, the

- cam roller Hi3 will be opposite the depression H14 in the driving cam H32 and will drop down permitting the driving pawl lfll to engage the ratchet wheel 93. When the pawl shaft 10 moves in a forward direction with the driving pawl ll in engagement with the ratchet wheel 93 it moves the ratchet wheel 93 and the associated gears 95, 96, 98 and 99. Since the gear 99 is fixed to the conveyor drive shaft 15 *by means of a pin it!!! the conveyor drive shaft will be moved and the stack of deposited slices will be carried on the conveyor a predetermined distance leaving a space for a new stack of slices deposited during the repetition of the cycle.

If it is desired to shingle the slices as they are deposited, the shingling handle 35 is set on a predetermined setting to permit the pawl lever 69 to engage with the ratchet wheel I l and thereby drive the conveyor drive shaft 15 with each forward movement of the pawl lever shaft 10. In this way each slice will be spaced from each succeeding slice, the distance of the spacing depending upon the setting of the handle 35. As will be apparent, the timing pawl 90 functions in the same manner as previously described regardless of the movement of the shingling pawl. Hence, the grouping mechanism will move the conveyor 4 after it has received a predetermined number of slices depending upon the setting of the grouping handle 35.

If it is desired to operate the device as a shingling device only the grouping handle 36 is moved to its farthest counterclockwise position which in turn causes the timing cam 5i! to be moved so that the outer curved surface of the cam will continuously engage the cam roller 9| of the timing pawl 90 and prevent the latter from engaging the ratchet wheel 92.

If both handles 35 and 36 are moved to their extreme counterclockwise positions the conveyor belt 4 will remain stationary.

The invention provides a new and improved apparatus for operation with a slicer such as a meat slicer to group and/or shingle the slices onto a conveyor. The apparatus is characterized by simplicity and easy operation. It is also compact and requires very little modification of conventional meat slicers for attachment thereto.

The invention is hereby claimed as follows:

1. In a slicing machine having a conveyor, a drive shaft for the conveyor, and a fly mounted on a rotatable shaft for discharging slices onto the conveyor, a grouping and shingling device comprising a plurality of ratchet wheels mounted on said drive shaft including a driving ratchet wheel, a. timing ratchet wheel and a shingling ratchet wheel, a driving pawl operatively associated with the driving ratchet wheel, a timing pawl operatively associated with the timing ratchet wheel, a shingling pawl operatively associated with the shingling ratchet wheel, a cam roller on the driving pawl, a cam roller on the timing pawl, a cam roller on the shingling pawl, a driving cam operatively associated with the driving pawl cam roller, a. cam operatively associated with the timing pawl cam roller, a shingling cam operatively associated with the shingling pawl cam roller, means connecting the timing pawl ratchet wheel to the driving pawl ,cam, means operatively connecting the shingling ratchet wheel to said drive shaft, means operatively connecting the driving ratchet wheel to said drive shaft, means to cause said pawls to be reciprocatecl in the same direction simultaneously, manually operative adjusting means to change the position of the timing pawl cam with respect to its associated pawl, and manually operated adjusting means to change the position of the shingling pawl cam with respect to its associated pawl.

2. A grouping device for use in a slicing machine having a conveyor, a conveyor drive shaft, and a fly mounted on a fly shaft for delivering slices to the conveyor, comprising a driving ratchet wheel mounted on the drive shaft and secured thereto, a timing ratchet wheel freely mounted on the drive shaft, a driving pawl operatively associated with said driving ratchet wheel, a timing pawl operatively associated with said timing ratchet wheel, a cam roller on the driving pawl, a cam roller on the timing pawl, a driving cam connected to said driving ratchet wheel and operatively associated with said cam roller on the driving pawl, a timing cam operatively associated with said cam roller on the timing pawl, common support means for said pawls, actuating means connected between the fly shaft and said support means for reciprocating said support means and the pawls thereon and operating the associated ratchet wheels, and manually operated adjusting means to change the position of the timing cam with respect to its associated pawl.

3. A grouping device for use in a slicing machine having a conveyor, a conveyor drive shaft, and a fiy mounted onv a fly shaft for delivering slices to the conveyor, comprising a driving ratchet wheel mounted on the drive shaft and secured thereto, a timing ratchet wheel freely mounted on the drive shaft, a shingling ratchet wheel mounted on the drive shaft and secured thereto, a. driving pawl operatively associated with said driving ratchet wheel, a timing pawl operatively associated with said timing ratchet wheel, a shingling pawl operatively associated with said shingling ratchet wheel, a cam, roller on the driving pawl, a cam roller on the timing pawl, a driving cam connected to said driving ratchet Wheel and operatively associated with the driving pawl cam roller, a timing cam operatively associated with the timing pawl cam roller, common pport means for all of said pawls, actuating means connected between the fly shaft and said support means for reciprocating said support means and the pawls thereon and operating the associated ratchet wheels, manually operating adjusting means to change the position of the timing cam with respect to its associated pawl, and manually operated means to render said shingling pawl inoperative with respect to said shingling ratchet wheel.

4. A grouping device for use in a slicing ma chine having a conveyor, a conveyor drive shaft,

and a fly mounted on a fly shaft for delivering slices to the conveyor, comprising a driving ratchet wheel mounted on the drive shaft and secured thereto, a timing ratchet Wheel freely mounted on the drive shaft, a driving pawl operatively associated with said driving ratchet wheel,

a timing pawl operatively associated with said timing ratchet wheel, a cam roller on the driving pawl, a cam roller on the timing pawl, a driving cam connected to said driving ratchet Wheel and operatively associated with said cam roller on the driving pawl, a timing cam operatively associated with said cam roller on the timing pawl, a shaft for supporting said pawls, an arm rigid with the fly shaft and reciprocable in a rotary movement therewith, a link connecting said arm with the shaft supporting said pawls, thereby toreciprocate said pawls simultaneously and operate the ratchet wheels associated therewith, and manually operated adjusting means to change the position of the timing cam with respect to its associated pawl.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,231,959 Stiles July 3, 1917 1,293,774 Hieatzman Feb, 11, 1919 1,310,262 Van Berkel July 15, 1919 1,519,354 Brown Dec. 16, 192% 2,042,116 Morris May 26, 1936 

